1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cutting grass sods from grass land.
2. Background Art
Grass sod is utilized to quickly form large grass surfaces such as sports fields, golf courses and lawns. The grass sod is cut from a grass land and typically has a breadth of between 24 and 48 inches. The cut grass sod is collected as a roll or a slab.
It is desirable that the cut grass sod have a constant thickness over its length and breadth. However, the grass land from which the grass sod is cut often has sloping terrain over the length and/or breadth of the grass sod wherein the terrain is slightly hollow or slightly rounded. Because of the sloping terrain, difficulties are encountered maintaining the thickness of the grass sod constant over its length and/or breadth. This varying thickness yields problems during laying of sports fields and the like which must be as flat as possible. Moreover, the thickness of the cut grass sod is dependent on the application. For example, a golfing green or a high quality sports field would utilize a grass sod that is preferably cut as thinly as possible. Conversely, for gardens or planting grass fields, the grass sods can be cut thicker. If the grass sod is cut from a sloping terrain, a temporary "dead" spot can be produced. This is a particular problem when the grass sod is cut as thinly as possible, such as for golfing greens or high quality sports fields. In applications where thicker grass sods can be utilized, it is important to cut the grass sod at a substantially constant thickness over its length and/or breadth in order to reduce transportation costs moreover, it is desirable to cut the grass sods at a substantially uniform thickness over its breadth in order to avoid a stack or roll of grass sod from sagging to one side or, in the case of narrow rolls or stacks of grass sods, from falling over.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for cutting a grass sod of a substantially uniform thickness over its length and breadth.